


Breaking Out

by Dorian_The_Grey



Category: The Magicians (TV), The Magicians - Lev Grossman
Genre: Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Bisexual Male Character, Canon Bisexual Character, Canon Gay Character, Closeted Character, Coming Out, Drug Use, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gay Male Character, Hurt Quentin, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, M/M, Mental Health Issues, Nerdy References, Quentin is nerd, Self Confidence Issues, Sexual Content, Sexual Tension, past thoughts of suicide, powerful Quentin, slight AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-17
Updated: 2017-01-18
Packaged: 2018-09-17 14:34:02
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,607
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9329216
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dorian_The_Grey/pseuds/Dorian_The_Grey
Summary: After years of playing the tag-along Quentin finally gets the push he needs to break out of his shell.With encouragement from friends, a new wardrobe, and a new attitude he captures the attention of the one person he's been hung up on for months.But that's not the only person who's eye he's caught./Slight AU; most things stay the same with the exception of Quentin's relationships./





	1. Friendship

**Author's Note:**

> We need more Queliot. I'm heartbroken that there isn't more out there, so I've decided to create my own.
> 
> Some events are the same, some are different.
> 
> So far, almost everything has happened the same. Quentin, Alice, and Penny have all completed the trials but Alice and Quentin didn't end up doing anything together. 
> 
> Mike hasn't shown up yet, so he and Eliot never had sex or started dating. 
> 
> The trip to Ibiza was canceled due to the fact that Margo and Eliot couldn't find a suitable gift so instead they stayed home, bought a hot tub and spent the weekend getting wasted.

"I am not entirely comfortable with this situation." Quentin comments as Margo, once again, shoves an armful of clothes to his chest and demands him to try them all on.

She'd been doing this all day, waking him up at some inhumane hour to drag him from one store to the next all around New York. Most of the time complaining more than he had himself.

"Well I'm not comfortable watching you skulk around the cottage dressed like a homeless slob." Margo quipped back.

"I-- do not skulk." Quentin says, rolling his eyes with an exasperated sigh. He appreciated his friends concern, as uncomfortable as it may be, but he didn't see the point of dressing up. It's not like he was trying to impress anyone. And the one person he might want to was so far out of his league, and so very uninterested in him, that they probably wouldn't even notice anyway.

"Listing up Q, I don't know why, but I actually like you. Now, the whole frumpy nerd thing was working at first, but you seriously need to step up your game.  
You are not that friendless, depressed little nobody anymore. You have friends, who actually care about you. And if there is one thing your friends know, i.e. Me, it's that the better you dress on the outside, the better you'll feel on the inside."

Quentin was silent for a long moment, torn between being slightly insulted and extremely touched by Margo's declaration. Rationally he knew he had friends, Eliot, Margo, Alice, sometimes on a very rarely good day even Penny. But after everything he had gone through with Julia and James, and then the whole Julia Mind Fucking him, his faith in friendship had diminished.

A part of him, the dark ugly part he had spent years trying to kill, would whisper that they were all liars. Just like Julia. No one cares about poor pathetic little Quentin.

But this was Margo. The same Margo who declared her affections through snappy comebacks, snide remarks, and verbal abuse. Who very rarely said exactly what she was feeling in a genuine, clear way. Margo had a mean streak and often came across as insincere or insensitive. For her to outright admit to caring for Quentin and his feelings was something that couldn't be faked.

It was in that moment that he saw the Margo that Eliot saw. The vulnerable and caring one. It was enough to convince him that this whole trip wasn't just a clever way to humiliate him. That in her own way, Margo was trying to do something nice for the younger student.

"Alright, fine. Let's get this over with." Quentin conceded.

And like that, Margo's mask slipped back on and it was all sassy comments and occasional wolf-whistles.

After a while Quentin had actually began to enjoy himself. Going so far as to pull Margo up from her seat and dance her around the store after she commented on how well one of the suits she picked out made his ass look.

By the time they arrived back at the cottage it was almost dark, dozens of bags clutched in each of their arms. Despite his utter exhaustion, Quentin couldn't keep the ridiculous grin off of his face or stop himself from laughing whenever Margo would bring up the other patrons from some of the shops who weren't equip to handle all of the fashionista's crazy.

His good mood must have been infectious because the minute Alice caught sight of his broad grin she developed one of her own.

"Alright Q, that was surprisingly fun. You should know we are so doing it again." Margo told him firmly, a small smile twisting her painted lips.

Part of Quentin wanted to protest, the part he seemed to fall back on when he was worried things were going too well. But a larger part was more than excited to go back out with his friend. He had had fun, and that was something Quentin could honestly say he hadn't experienced in a very long time.

"Yeah, sure... Uh... That sounds like a lot of fun Margo."

Margo nodded at him approvingly before making her way up the stairs, most likely going to drop off and sort through her brand-new stack of designer clothes with Eliot.

It was at that moment Alice came up to him, carefully taking a few of the bags he was clearly struggling with.

"It seems you had a very eventful day." The blonde comments as she begins to follow Quentin up the stairs to his own room. He smiled back at her, still feeling the high of enjoyment he had experienced earlier.

"I did... It was actually fun. I mean, um, not at first but... I um... I haven't really been this happy in a while, if ever." Quentin confessed as they entered his room, "Is that pathetic?"

Alice smiled gently as she set the bags down on Quentin's bed. "No Quentin. It's not."

He smiled back at her, reaching up and tucking a string of hair behind his ear, "I don't... I don't um, think I'm fixed... anymore or anything. But... I think I could be okay. Here. You know? I-I mean... I don't know what I mean."

"I get it Quentin." Alice says soothingly as she begins to unpack some of his bags, "This is nice." She comments as she holds up a black button down.

"Thanks. Yeah, uh, Margo picked it out."

Alice chuckles, "I can see that." she says lightly before moving over to Quentin's closet to start hanging up his new clothes. Knowing him, they would probably sit in the bags if she didn't do something.

Quentin watched quietly as his friend went through his new stack of clothes, flitting back and forth from the bed to the closet. A part of him felt a little bad, standing awkwardly while Alice put his clothes away, but Quentin was self aware enough to admit that the second he sat down the last thing he'd want to do is put away his things. "Thank you." He said softly as Alice neatly folded a pair of jeans and sat them down on the end of his bed, along with a light blue denim button down.

"That's for tomorrow. Margo helped you pick all this out, the least you can do is actually wear it." She lectured in her matter-of-fact voice. She seemed to use that voice a lot. "Promise Quentin." Alice commanded when she noticed he had began to drift off into his inner thoughts.

"Yes, yes, okay. I promise." Quentin told her, holding up his left hand and placing the right over his heart. He may not have been a boy-scout but hopefully Alice would appreciate the sentiment. She didn't. He could see, by the deadpan expression she leveled him with. "I promise." He said more sincerely. That, at least, seemed to do the trick.

Alice nodded in approval before making her way to the door, turning only once to bid him a good night, "Sweet dreams Quentin."

Quentin smiled and returned a nod of his own, "Sweet dreams Alice."


	2. A New Look

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Quentin shows off his new look.  
> Margo is a secret shipper.  
> And Eliot successfully inserts foot into mouth.

Quentin hated to admit it but, Margo may have been on to something. Obviously he would never say that to her face... or near her... or just not out loud. Ever. He would never live it down. But despite his fragile masculinity he could break down and admit, at least inside his own head, that he felt good.

The new clothes weren't his usually style. All form fitting button downs and hip hugging slacks and jeans. It was a far cry from Quentin's normal ensemble of too-big sweat shirts and too-baggy pants that did absolutely nothing for him. But it seemed the light colored button down and the dark wash jeans were more than flattering on the normally frumpy male.

Now Quentin wasn't one for self-complements, at least not when it came to his own appearance, but even he could admit that he looked good. He may just have to break down and thank Margo for all her help after all. And as her words from yesterday echoed back to him he realized just how true they were, he did feel good on the inside.

Taking a deep breath the Brooklyn native picked up his satchel and prepared himself for another day. Unfortunately what he hadn't mentally prepared himself for, and honestly he should have known better, was all of the gawking he would be subjected to. The second Quentin's foot hit the bottom step and he was fully exposed to the living room he was hit with almost a dozen double takes.

It was awkward and uncomfortable, causing Quentin to withdraw into himself. Maybe this had been a mistake. He was just about to turn back around and retreat back up to the safety of his own room when a familiar arm wound it's way through his.

"You look even better than you did yesterday." Margo complemented as she pulled him along, her chin held high as she easily ignored all of the 'lowly' people who were still staring.

"Um... Thanks Margo, but-" Quentin began nervously, only to be cut off by the pushy fashion queen.

"No buts! You are going to wear that outfit, and all the others I picked out, and you're gonna like it." Margo said with conviction, not allowing any room for him to argue with her.

Resigned to his emanate fate, Quentin conceded and simply followed after the other student as she led him to what was dubbed as 'Their Corner'. 'Their' meaning Eliot's and her own, which was now extended in invitation to Quentin himself.

"So where's Eliot?" He asked, trying to keep the curiosity in his tone to a minimum. A part of him was anxious to see what the older male's reaction to his new look would be, though another part of him was dreading it.

He knew that if Eliot dismissed him Quentin's self-confidence would shatter in a second, but he genuinely wanted the others approval. Whether it be on clothes or just anything in general. Quentin wasn't sure why his mental stability was reliant on Eliot's opinion of him, but it was. The long haired boy found himself obsessing more and more about what Eliot would think. In all honestly it was starting to become manic and kind of scary.

He had confided to Alice about his obsession with the elders approval and attention but had only received one of her patent 'How are you so smart and yet so stupid' looks that she seemed to reserve especially for Quentin.

"Oh, you know," Margo chirped, yanking Quentin out of his spiraling inner monologue, "He's getting all prettied up for his boys."

He knew it was meant to be teasing and flippant, but Quentin couldn't help the painful twinge that went through his stomach at the thought of Eliot getting all dressed up for someone else. It was a strange sensation that he had been experiencing a lot lately, especially at times like this when Margo would make a comment about Eliot's disappearances, always blaming it on 'One of Eliot's boys'.

He hoped no one noticed the way his face would twist in a grimace before settling into a dark and brooding expression, leaving Quentin feeling empty and cold for days afterwards. He had no idea why this was a constant reaction, it's not like he was jealous of Eliot. And of course there was absolutely no way he was jealous of any of the guys that slept with the eccentric upperclassmen.

Except maybe he was.

If only a little.

But honestly, it was only because he didn't understand the reason why Eliot would go for what seemed like every guy  _but_ Quentin. And maybe that wasn't fair. Eliot could sleep with whoever he wanted, whenever he wanted, and it was obvious that he didn't want Quentin.

And okay, that stung.

A lot.

But it was fine, honestly. Because despite the bitterness and ache it sometimes caused him Quentin had something none of those boys ever would. He had Eliot's friendship.

So maybe friendship wasn't the  _only_ thing he wanted, but hey, he would take it and be happy. Because Quentin would rather have a lifetime of Eliot's friendship than a single night of a meaningless romp.

"There he is." Margo announces happily, once more pulling Quentin out of his own head. He looked up to where she was pointing and flinched as he watched one of the second year boys run a seductive hand down Eliot's arm before swaggering off with an air of satisfaction.

So maybe he wasn't completely okay after all.

"Hey bitch~" Margo greets him as she prances up and links her arm with her fellow fashionista before dragging him over to face a tormented Quentin. "Look what mama created." She says gleefully as she sweeps an arm over Quentin's frozen form.

The younger male can't help but fidget slightly as Eliot stares at him silently, eyes wide and mouth opening and closing awkwardly.

"Um... Hey. Eliot." Quentin says just as awkward, trying in any way to defuse the growing uncomfortable situation.

Eliot stares wordlessly for another full moment before he seems to finally pull himself together, an air of superiority overtaking him as he slips back behind his mask of sarcasm and haughty self importance. "Well don't you look uncharacteristically fabulous today, Q. Obviously not as fabulous as moi, but then again, who is?"

Quentin tries to smile at his friends unsurprising response but can't seem to manage more than a halfhearted twitch of the lips. "Um... Yeah. Of course, no one is, because you know... um... You're you and... uh... I gotta go. To class. Right." He stumbles over the words before making a hasty retreat.

Okay. So that was officially the worst morning of his entire existence.

 

"What the Hell Eliot?" Margo demands as they watch Quentin all but run out of the room. Never had Margo had the urge to just smack Eliot more than she did right at that moment.

"I have no idea what you are referring to." Eliot says dismissively as he makes his way over to the bar, followed closely by a fuming Margo.

She had gone through way too much trouble building that boy up for her idiot best friend to ruin it because he couldn't handle his attraction in a mature way. By mature she basically meant by banging the little nerd and then having tiny fashionable nerd babies that she could spoil rotten.

"You know exactly what I mean Eliot. I may not be the most sensitive person around, and yes I'll freely and proudly admit that I'm a mean bitch, but even I can see what a dick move that just was." She tells him straight up, very unhappy with the mornings turn of events. She could see how happy Quentin had been when he came down the stairs, and though he was having a bit of a set back with all of the attention his new look had drawn, it was obviously that he still felt good about himself. But then Eliot had to open his stupid mouth and destroy all of Margo's hard work.

"What? I told him he looked fabulous." Eliot defended as he poured himself a cocktail, expertly ignoring Margo's heated glare.

"You know Eliot, sooner or later someone else is going to realize just how attractive Q is. Then what are you going to do?" She comments before walking away, intent on finding Alice and demanding she go cheer up Margo's favorite firstie.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eliot's not having the best of luck dealing with his emotions and successfully ends up, though not purposefully, upsetting Quentin. Which in turn upsets Margo. Nobody wants to upset Margo.

**Author's Note:**

> I've changed the dynamic between Quentin and Alice. After doing the trials together they've learned a lot about each other, but instead of having the underlying sexual tension between the two of them they simply grew close as friends. Alice is to Quentin what Margo is to Eliot, just without all of the touchy, goofiness because come on, that's so not their personalities.
> 
> Also, again, Mike hasn't shown up yet, so he and Eliot haven't met and don't have a relationship.


End file.
